Ada Yonath

“I don't distinguish between men and women. This is irrelevant to me, and I don't think in these terms.”

“The ribosome is a machine that gets instructions from the genetic code and operates chemically in order to produce the product.”

“I used ribosomes from very, very robust bacteria under very, very active conditions and found a way - I actually took advantage of research done before me at the Weizmann, the same institute I am now - how to preserve their activity and their integrity while they crystallized.”

“My kindergarten teacher encouraged me to learn, as did my school headmaster, who gave me a grant to study.”

“I was born in Jerusalem in 1939 to a poor family that shared a rented four-room apartment with two additional families and their children.”

“People are obsessed with my haircut; everyone wants to do something with my hair before the ceremony. Very senior figures tell me their hairstylist wants to do my hair for free. It's surprising. People from television are interested almost exclusively in aspects of my hair and my hairdresser.”

“Waiting for me in Stockholm will be a personal assistant - Katrina from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs - as well the secretary of the Swedish Academy. They'll help us with our things and take us to our hotel. From the moment I arrive, I'll always be together with the other two laureates.”

“I am against boycotts in general: boycotts against us as well as anything and everything that can be boycotted.”

“Proteins are constantly being degraded. Therefore, simultaneous production of proteins is required.”

“After I spent my compulsory army service in the 'top secret office' of the Medical Forces, where I was fortunate to be exposed to clinical and medical issues, I enrolled to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.”

“The world was not supportive. They look at me as a joke for 13 to 14 years until I could prove feasibility; then I had competitors. Those that laughed at me became my competitors.”

“My neighborhood didn't really encourage women, though it didn't prevent women from progressing, either.”

“For quite a while, I didn't receive a higher academic status. I didn't feel any discrimination against me as a woman scientist, but I hadn't produced a lot of science journal articles.”

“If one has curiosity, then one stands the chance of attain a high level of scientific inquiry.”

“Many ribosomes act simultaneously along the mRNA, forming superstructures called polysomes.”

“My memories from my childhood are centered on my father's medical conditions alongside my constant desire to understand the principles of the nature around me.”

“Words originating from the verb 'to die' were frequently used when I described my initial plans to determine the ribosome structure.”

“People always talk about the implication and applications of a process, but for me, the goal is purely about knowledge. Knowledge can become practical today, in 20 years, or in 500 years. Ask Newton. He didn't know there would be space research based on his accident with the apple.”

“It is a great honor for me to be able to express my sincere gratitude to the Nobel Foundation.”

“I'm truly glad I've managed to get the public interested in questions about basic research.”